line-item veto

noun

: the power of a government executive to veto specific items in an appropriations bill without vetoing the bill altogether

Examples of line-item veto in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And the Supreme Court upheld congressional spending power in a 1996 decision that ruled it unconstitutional for a president to cancel only one part of a law, also known as a line-item veto. Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 29 Jan. 2025 Several challenges to the act and executive impoundment have come through the courts, including the 1998 Supreme Court case Clinton v. City of New York that challenged President Clinton's use of a line-item veto to cut funding, the courts have ruled against executive impoundments. Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 28 Jan. 2025 The Supreme Court ruled in 1996 that the line-item veto, for presidents to cancel parts of legislation rather than entire laws, was unconstitutional. Bart Jansen, USA TODAY, 28 Jan. 2025 The push comes a few days after the House Democratic Caucus encouraged DeWine to line-item veto the same provisions, along with parts of other bills. J.d. Davidson | The Center Square, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 28 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for line-item veto 

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of line-item veto was in 1979

Dictionary Entries Near line-item veto

Cite this Entry

“Line-item veto.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/line-item%20veto. Accessed 12 Feb. 2025.

Legal Definition

line-item veto

noun
: an executive veto of a specific item in an appropriations bill
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